New logistics technology solutions improve competitiveness

HONG KONG – Business firms in Asia, including the Philippines, must make investments in new logistics technology solutions to become competitive in the global market, provide improved customer service and grow their businesses, top executives of transportation and logistics service provider United Parcel Services (UPS) said.

Speaking in a summit held here, Dave Barnes, senior vice president and chief information officer of UPS, said business firms in Asia must consider investing in new logistics technology solutions to be able to compete in the global market as trade is becoming more important to economic growth in the region.

“Firms in Asia must think about investing in new logistics technology solutions since most of these countries’ economies are driven by global trade. This also applies to firms in the Philippines since these firms, are all out there to compete,” he said.

As trade continues to power Asia’s economy, UPS president for Asia Pacific Derek Woodward said in the same event that new logistics technology solutions can allow firms to become competitive through streamlined processes of doing business.

In particular, he said firms can use new logistics technology solutions to do away with paper commercial invoices and transform lengthy customs documents into electronic data.

Apart from helping firms succeed in exporting to other countries through simplified business processes like paperless transactions, new logistics technology solutions can also allow firms to provide improved customer service.

For instance, he said, customers purchasing goods now want more information on when and how the products are delivered to them until the shipment arrives at their doorstep or warehouse through their mobile devices or smart phones which new logistics technology solutions can allow firms to address.

He noted that in Asia, where the penetration of mobile phones or smart devices is high, the need for new logistics technology solutions of firms operating in the region becomes even more important.

Firms, he also said, can better provide better customer service as new logistics technology solutions allow for inventory management or to determine if the right amount of products are available in a particular site to meet customer needs.

“The right technologies allow companies to immediately access inventory levels at any of their global facilities and make critical supply chain decisions,” he said.

Barnes said new logistics technologies can also help firms reach new customers and thus, grow their business.

“Technology enables this movement of global commerce through a variety of services that improve efficiency and make cross-border shipments much faster, less expensive,” he said.

With logistics technologies offering benefits to firms, Woodward said such technology solutions must be on the agenda of firms’ top officials.

“Logistics and the related technologies must be on the radars and agenda of everyone from the CEO (chief executive officer), CFO (chief finance officer), and COO (chief operating officer) to the VP (vice presidents) of supply chain and operations.” This is because technology impacts not just one area of the supply chain, but of the supply chain as a whole and therefore business as a whole, he said.